An Overview of Business Culture Awareness Abroad

Alan Green, UK and Eberhard Oehler, Germany

Alan Green is a trainer at Pilgrims Language School in Canterbury.
E-mail: aldi@tinyworld.co.uk Eberhard Oehler was his trainee in October 2009. He is Managing Director of the international consultant company MVV-Decon.
E-mail: swegf@web.de

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Introduction
Two key principles
Respecting cultural relationships
Conclusion

Introduction

In the following article we would like to give you some ideas about avoiding embarrassing cultural situations when you are abroad as a business person. The basic premise: There is a great difference between a tourist and a business person.

Two key principles

A. “Whenever we leave our home country we will be guests”. Don’t forget this reality all the time you are travelling, even as a tourist.

B. “You have to recognise that all the time you are abroad you will be an ambassador for your country”. This is especially the case if you are a business person.

If you are abroad as a tourist you pay a lot of money for your holiday. A tourist may believe that as he has paid his money he will have the right to go his own way without consideration or respect to the host country, hotel staff and tourist personnel. If the tourist steps into a cultural pitfall the hotel staff or the tourist personnel will recognise this. But most of the time they will turn a blind eye to the cultural mistakes. When this happens the tourist will be unaware of his own errors.

If a business person makes a cultural “faux pas” this will be recognised by the business partner and it is possible that this mistake will create a barrier. If this happens it will make your oncoming negotiations more difficult.

So be aware that if you are abroad as a business person you will always be a “guest.” This means you have to be respectful to the host, try to conform to their culture and never forget your obligations.

Respecting cultural relationships

To respect cultural relationships means you have to recognise that the values and beliefs of the country you are visiting will be different from your home country and that you need to respond accordingly.

A. Be aware of your own cultural background in relation to the culture you are going to (especially if it is non-European).

You should never forget that you are coming from a developed country and you have a wide experience of basic services and generous educational provision. If you are travelling to developing countries you have to recognise that most of your business partners could have really limited basic services (accommodation, public transport, healthcare, water or electrical supply services) and will not have had the same chance to improve their education like you. There will also be a general lack of basic equipment.

B. Open your mind to the awareness of “cultural appropriacy”.

Some examples are:

• Completely different approaches to meetings (e.g. in many countries it is common to start the meeting with coffee or tea and small talk about weather conditions, sport or family. Sometimes this can take more time than the actual business).
• Different awareness of time management (e.g. to be “on time” might not be the same for you as for your business partner).
• The significance of religious practices (e.g. it may happen that your business partner leaves the meeting or dinner to pray)
• The significance of gender and racial issues (e.g. normally you don’t shake hands with a female business partner in a large number of countries).

C. You have to fully recognise the level of education of the host population.

When you are working with ordinary people you will be faced with colleagues who may be illiterate or have a very limited level of education. Nevertheless, in their daily work they have the goal of increasing their standard of living. Many of our partners may never have had the opportunity to reach a higher level of education. They will want to achieve the best results they can, but their methods and approaches will be different. Business partners and workers often have a lack of tools, equipment and infrastructure. n many cases we could not do their job with the same limited resources.

Example

If you have to do a presentation, check which equipment will be available or what level of education the participants will have. Sometimes it will be helpful, especially if you have to present in front of people with a low level of education or illiterate people, to make the presentation using comic strips, pictures, video or in another visual way.
Appropriate rather than “state of the art” technology should be incorporated according to their own knowledge or experience. We should ensure that indigenous staff are able to maintain and correct any malfunctions.

D. To recognise the vast differences in standard of living, sanitation, health provision, religious behaviours and business codes of practice.

Avoid the many pitfalls that can occur through your own inappropriate behaviour. Research into both, the overall cultural expectations and the more local or personal expectations of the area and the people that you are visiting. Be sensitive towards verbal and non-verbal signals from your host and respond accordingly.

Conclusion

If you give full respect to your counterpart wherever you will be then the respect will be mutual. Also, don’t ask anybody to do something that you wouldn’t do yourself. Mutual respect leads to successful business.

Please check the How to teach English to Business People course at Pilgrims website.